I want to try something different today. Before you scroll down and read what I have to say, watch the first 1:44 of the video below, and the description of exactly what happens. Be warned, it is very graphic, and very sad. Ask yourself, what would I have done? What would I expect others to do? After you've read what I have to say, please put your own thoughts in the Comments section. I really want to know what you have to say.

"Footage is taken from a surveillance camera presented on local TV shows; [2-year old] Yue Yue was walking in a hardware market in Foshan, Guangdong province [in China], on Thursday, about 100 meters away from her home, when she was run over by a van at 5:26 p.m.The girl was then run over by a light-duty truck. The riders of four electric bicycles, a tricycle and three passers-by all chose to ignore her and no one at a shop close to the scene came to her aid.

"Seven minutes after she was first hit by the van, a 57-year-old rag collector noticed the girl and moved her to the curb. The woman then tried talking to the shopkeeper but received no response. When she ran from shop to shop for the identity of the girl, the rag collector was told by a number of shopkeepers to mind her own business. She then walked into the street and a few seconds later, the girl's mother appears and rushes away with the girl."

Yue Yue later died as a result of her brain injuries.

At first glance, it's easy to blame almost everyone involved (or not involved). Some blame Yue Yue's mother, for letter her daughter out of her sight. Some blame the drivers, who roll over the girl as if nothing happens. Still others find fault with the passers-by, who do absolutely nothing to help a toddler lying in the street. I think everyone shares some blame, really. In an ideal world, you'd think the driver(s) would stop and look to see if they could help. And in fact, if one of the first few people had helped the girl, she might not have died from her injuries.

So the next logical question is: why didn't anyone help Yue Yue sooner? If you see a child, lying helpless, hurt, and bleeding alone in the middle of the street, wouldn't some intangible force, be it your conscience or social pressure, or just plain old good nature, make you stop and see if you could help? Unfortunately, the mantra of our era is "Don't Get Involved". We have been conditioned to mind our own business, that other people's problems are not ours, let every man fend for himself. Technology such as texting and social media has allowed us to connect with others...without making contact.

If this had happened in the U.S., my opinion would end there. But this happened in China. A different society altogether. I was looking for something to corroborate this and found nothing, but I can't help but wonder how much Chinese stigma against girls played into Yue Yue's accident. In the video, there are a couple people who look like they want to stop, and I can almost picture them saying, "Oh, it's just a girl." In fact, as far as I can tell, the woman who finally stops to help Yue Yue is the first woman to see her. This is all conjecture on my part, but it's worth thinking about.

Something else that could be attributed to the apparent oblivion shown in the video is the fact that Yue Yue was "the latest example of passers-by acting indifferently to victims injured in crimes...caused at least in part by previous extortion attempts from the injured and their families who have sometimes tried to blame the person helping.

"The notorious "Nanjing Peng Yu" incident is fresh in people's minds even after five years. In 2006, in Nanjing City in east China, a young man named Peng Yu, who had just gotten off a bus, went to aid a 65-year old woman who was knocked down by a fellow passenger. The woman eventually sued Peng, claiming he was the one who knocked her down." In fact, just before giving himself up to police, the driver of the first truck who hit Yue Yue said, "If she is dead, I may pay only about 20,00 yuan ($3,125). But if she is injured, it may cost me hundreds of thousands yuan."

So there is a genuine fear of being sued unjustly for trying to help an injured person. On a Chinese website, one person summed it up best: "Would you risk being accused of being the perpetrator? Would you be willing to dump your entire family's savings into the endless vortex of accident compensation?...Have you not considered that one moment of greatness could mean your entire family losing their happiness with you?" Another person had this to say: "We first cannot blame the driver, who makes a living with his physical labor. We cannot close our eyes and demand that he bear too much responsibility, as he didn't mean to hit someone either, and it was definitely very difficult to have noticed [the child], and afterward he was conflicted too, only he was afraid of bearing the burden of compensation and that's why he chose to run away. I can sympathize with him. After all, running away means still having a life to live while not running might mean his life is completely ruined. Though running away means his conscience is to be condemned, how important is one's conscience for the rabble where simply getting enough to eat is already a major accomplishment? Not betraying one's conscience in reality is a kind of spiritual luxury.

"The people who passed by are also not worthy of being blamed. To conclude that they are cold-blooded for turning a blind eye is a bit arbitrary...When it is a child [as opposed a dog or cat getting hurt], everyone pretends they don't see, it is always like this, almost without exception. This is not about whether or not a person is cold-blooded...but it is definitely about there being a very serious problem in society. These days, it is better to be less involved than more involved. Getting involved may very well mean getting majorly screwed. There are really too many of these kind of precedents, and everyone has silently evolved from these observations. No one is more qualified than anyone else to criticize." To read more of what people had to say (and I strongly suggest you do, it's a fascinating study on Chinese culture and mentality), click here.

As much as I can understand the consequences of being falsely accused and sued and taken away from your family who might not otherwise be able to support themselves, is it really too much to ask to do the right thing? Is it really too much to as to take pity on and help another human being, much less a child? We were put on this earth to help one another, yet somehow we've gotten away from that very basic principle. Let's face it, if doing the right thing were easy, everyone would be doing it. Fact of the matter is, it's tough to choose the right course of action, or to help when you know you could be severely penalized. But if we don't help each other, there really is no hope for humanity.

It's not a matter of cold blooded, it's a matter of culture. Look, we can bitch about America all we want, but our culture has us rushing to the aid of people like this like there's no tomorrow. Girl, boy, man, woman, Ewok. China on the other hand has cultural barriers we may never understand, and if we do they will probably forclose on our loans. I'm not defending this atrocious act, but I am saying that there's a different culture there that no one, let alone me living outside of China may understand. Granted the actions of the woman are noble, but still there's the threat of a lawsuit (a totally fictional claim if that happened in the US) and overall while some may have their animal instincts to help, there's that other part of people ignoring it-and apparently it's ok because no one is the wiser or getting arrested for it.

At the end of the day, we have to strip down culture and do the right thing. help! I could careless what society thinks. of you belive in your heart to what's right, in this case helping yue-yuee, then by all means go help! it's a child for Christ sake! this happens in all cultures, trust me I've seen it. My friend has seen it and she told me about an incident in L.A where I live close by; a women was beaten in the face while walking with her Baby on a stroller, and was surrounded by gangsters. Until my friend, noticed nobody was doing nothing, so she called 911 and they came quick. DON'T LIVE YOUR LIFE BY WALKING BY, CARE!

Reply

alyssa

10/19/2011 07:14:43 pm

very sad and crude video. I am stund by the person who took it actually. why would you do such a thing. People who walk by probably think well the child is already dead so what is there to do. They dont think for a second that by at least checking to see if the child is alive that that is better than doing nothing at all. That is what the woman did

Thanks for all your great comments. The video is a surveillance video from a nearby store. Alyssa makes a good point that many of the people may have believed that the child was dead and so thought there wasn't anything they could do.

Reply

Laura

10/19/2011 09:02:34 pm

i really think people should stop being so self centered. this just saddens me.

It really is sad, but this is exactly why we need to take stock of ourselves and strive to be better. Hopefully after seeing this, more people will be less inclined to walk blindly past someone in need.

Reply

tracy

10/20/2011 03:35:59 pm

i would have helped either way. poor child. im glad they got arrested. glad that they turned themselves in. you dont see that in the states.

I checked out the link Jeff provided, and it was really good...enlightening. Here's an excerpt:

"There’s an easy explanation as to why Yue Yue was left to die:...China has become an ultra-utilitarian society. Psychologists have long known that there are two motivational centres in the human brain: one that’s utilitarian, rationale, and self-interested, and another that is social, emotional, and altruistic. We appeal to the former by emphasizing material results and rewards, and to the latter by emphasizing lofty principles and social ideals. The problem is that they’re mutually exclusive.

"China seems to have become so utilitarian that it can’t understand or even tolerate people who do things for altruistic reasons. The penniless scrap peddler rescued Yue Yue not because she was internally doing a cost-benefit analysis in her head or anticipating the material rewards of doing so (as some Chinese have accused her of doing), but because it was the right thing to do. So what’s happening right now to Chen Xianmei – the unwanted media attention, the unsolicited cash rewards, and public accusations of her being opportunistic – is itself just as tragic and as depressing as what happened to Yue Yue.

"According to the Shanghaiist, the public attention has traumatized Chen Xianmei, and has prompted her to flee her home of Foshan:

"Now with all of the media attention focused on her, as well as government officials and journalists knocking on her door night and day, Chen says she doesn’t even dare to turn on the television anymore.

‘“A lot of people are now saying that I’m doing it to get famous, and to get money. Even my neighbours are now saying so!' she said. 'That really wasn’t my intention, and I’m so afraid of hearing what people are saying that I don't dare to watch the news. I’m not out for fame or money.'

"When asked what she thought about the negative things that people were now saying about her, Chen said, 'I didn’t steal or rob. All I did was to save a child,' as tears began to fill her eyes.

"Chen Xianmei’s tears aren’t just for herself (she’s clearly being exploited by media reporters and those individuals who are donating money to her). They’re also for Yue Yue, and for a society that has become so hopelessly utilitarian it believes it can just buy someone’s goodness to appear less utilitarian.

"Chinese believe by rewarding Chen Xianmei they’re encouraging more people to be like her. But what will probably happen in the wake of Chen Xianmei’s story is a lot of Chinese complaining to the media how they weren’t immediately flooded with praise and money for selflessly helping others.

"Her life now turned upside down, Chen Xianmei herself said that if she were to be put back in the same situation, she’d still choose to save Yue Yue’s life. And she probably would – after weighing the pros and cons of doing so."

Reply

Danny

10/21/2011 02:50:28 pm

"All I did was to save a child,' as tears began to fill her eyes." wow. And to think people talk about her, I read the whole thing.. geez I really feel bad for her. But she did the right thing .And that's all that matters.

I agree, Danny. I think it really speaks about Chen's heart to know that she'd do everything all over again. Even knowing about the nasty consequences of helping someone, she would choose to do the same thing.